Chapter 99

"You came..." Lucian murmured, a faint smile tugging at his lips, like that alone gave him peace. "Sit," he added, and Ariella obediently lowered herself into the chair beside him. "You're really dying? I don't believe that. You're lying to me, right?" Her voice cracked as she spoke, eyes rimmed in red. Tears welled up, trembling on the edge before finally falling. Lucian froze for a second, then figured it out - those two idiots must've tricked her into coming. He wanted to say, "Yeah, it's a lie," but held back. If he admitted it, she'd probably storm right out. And all he wanted now was to look at her, listen to her talk-like he was parched in a desert and she was water. Only now did it hit him how deep his feelings ran. Just seeing her felt healing. And yet, the more clearly he saw that love, the more he hated himself. She'd been right there with him, but he'd ruined everything, pushed her away until she ended up with Vickers. That was all on him, and it was killing him. "Are you s